A qualitative, hermeneutic phenomenological study conducted through interviews with 20 non-traditional (NT) Hispanic/Latino female part-time community college students and located at an urban community college in southern New Jersey explored for factors of persistence and discontinuation. Six themes emerged. Theme 1: Institutional persistence factors included college employee commitment to students and college environment perceived as a comfort zone. Theme 2: Institutional barriers included insufficient time and personalized attention to entry interviews and inadequately trained entry-level advisement counselors. Theme 3: Academic persistence factors included positive classroom experiences and, perceptions of quality faculty, accessible faculty, and accessible tutors. Theme 4: Academic barriers included ESL transitions and lack of ongoing academic advisement. Theme 5: Personal persistence characteristics of independence, focused decision maker, self-advised, resilient to negativity, belief in self, and positive familial and employer support were most consistent in the 20 women interviewed. Theme 6: Personal barriers included multiple responsibilities of job, family, and school, limited time to access resources, reluctance to seek academic advisement, and lack of familiarity on how or unwilling to create academic alliances. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]